Old School Ganguro Wearing Alba Rosa in Shibuya

Shooting street fashion is a lot like hunting. You’re always prowling around the city hoping to capture (on your camera only, of course) something rare and amazing. Well, in 2011, there are few things more rare (or amazing) than a real live Ganguro! So, when we were running errands in Shibuya and saw this silver-haired Ganguro crossing the Shibuya 109 intersection with a Center Guy in pink braids, we dropped everything we were doing and went into Hunter Mode.

Luckily for us, this Ganguro Girl and Center Guy both turned out to be really friendly. Not only did they agree to let us snap a few quick photos, but they also stopped and let random school kids and other passersby take pictures as well. In old school Ganguro style, they were both wearing fashion from the famous-in-Shibuya Japanese brand Alba Rosa. Besides Alba Rosa, the girl was also wearing a couple of Ayumi Hamasaki necklaces and sporting several different facial piercings.

The only way to experience just how awesome these characters were is just to check out the images. And we highly recommend that you click on each of the pictures to see them in high resolution for the full effect!

Neither one of them are cross dressing Hanamarie, and for the others who condemn them – I’m honestly not sure what you are doing on a website that explores the highly varied world of Japanese fashion if you don’t like extremes.

9.

Cloke (February 22, 2011)

Nice catch!

10.

Eilish (February 22, 2011)

They are Manba! Not Ganguro! :D Geha is looking really nice these days (the girl)~

11.

Bittybrandi (February 22, 2011)

Aww I love the manba/banba/gyaru styles, I wish to see more of it. Its fascinating and wonderful.

12.

CupCake (February 22, 2011)

Manba is so FABULOUS! <3
I really love Gehako and Hideki ;D
They're so FAB! <3

Oh gosh, this is just…too much !
I will never understand the ganguro style.

18.

scarletcherry (April 4, 2011)

can anyone tell me (if there is a/) the difference between ganguro and yamamba?

19.

porfiria (April 11, 2011)

I never love these…

20.

Mina (April 15, 2011)

I…want…to touch their faces soo bad!!!! really it hurts me bad that i cant touh them…. :’D teehee<3 but hey creds to them! They wear what they want and looks like they dont care, I LIKE IT! :D

21.

Tania Ozawa (April 22, 2011)

One word for them. COOL!!!!!!

22.

Abi (April 23, 2011)

I’m all for alternative Japanese fashion but I find ganguro a little hard to understand. Probably partly my natural aversion to fake tan. It’s not that the style is too weird, I just think it’s a very unflattering look!

I am getting used to the style. Its a question of time to get all understood. But, as a westerner, I am still like in a super soup of fun, chic and crazy stuff all mixed and blended in an unique way. A revolutionary way of making fashion. Compared with what I was used to love in Japanese costume tradition, this “new”, (not so new for you) style feels like a bomb eliminating all sort of conservatism, conformism and boredom. I will get where you are in your minds!!! I hope so! But how much I love kimonos too!!!

27.

Dolly (May 13, 2011)

These two are so cool! This made me so happy to see! :D I thought this style was almost done for, which is such a shame because of the uniqueness in it.
Thank you, this made my day ♥

they aren’t “ganguros”. they’re both manba, although the boy (Hideo) has graduated, and the girl (Gehako) is soon to graduate from manba.
Hideo and Gehako both still wear very awesome, outrageous manba outfits, and they both used to wear tsuyome manba.
:3